Tuesday, September 20, 2016

Tennis Tips & Beauty Faves

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #HealthySkinSolutions #CollectiveBias

Hello friends! Today, I'd like to share with you some of my favorite tips for staying healthy on and off the tennis court. Some of you may already know that I've been playing tennis for over two decades and it still continues to be a passion in my life. But, now that I'm older, I realize how important what you do off the court can be for your overall tennis game & health. Keep reading to find out my top 5 tips for improving your game, as well as my secret for feeling young & healthy!

RULE 1: Improve Cardio I grew up in a desert where it regularly reached 110°F during the summers, so muscular endurance & a high level of overall fitness was a necessity to sustain competitive match-play. Since tennis matches can easily last a couple hours, it makes sense that better physical fitness will improve your performance on the court and reduce the chance of injury. My favorite way to improve my cardio is to do Gear Shifters, which is just a running workout, where you alternate between your easy, medium, and fast pace run {I like to do them twice in 20-minute intervals}.

RULE 2: Strength TrainStrength training reduces the chance of injury and improves your tennis game. It allows you to hit the ball harder, move faster, improve power and quickness, and make you more explosive on the court. Back in high school, when my life revolved around tennis, I always made sure to strengthen my upper and lower body {mainly through push-ups, lunges, squats, bicep curls and forearm extensions}. Three sets of 10 repetitions performed 3-4 times per week is best, just make sure not to do them on the same day or the day before a tennis match:).RULE 3: Split ItIf you are looking for a little more power in your shots, then I highly recommend using Split-Steps to prepare to receive a serve or return any shot. Split-Steps allow the legs to store elastic energy and then explode like a rubber band. A Split-Step is a slight hop followed by lowering oneself into the ready position on the balls of the feet {knees should be slightly bent, shoulder width apart}. RULE 4: PrepareHaving your racket in the proper position {with the racket-head down and face oriented towards the opposite court} will not only help you get a better shot, but also avoid undue stress to the shoulder, elbow, and wrist joints. RULE 5: Speed It UpPractice speed and agility drills. Tennis requires a lot of quick movement, footwork, and changes of direction. Practicing speed and agility will improve your ability to get in position quickly, to have time to prepare and make great shots. My favorite workouts to improve this are ski jumps & suicides!Alright, there’s my top tennis tips, now are you ready for the beauty tips I promised earlier?

People often comment on my skin saying it is flawless (and I can't help but choke down a laugh when people say that because if they ever saw me without makeup, I'm sure they wouldn't say the same thing). It is far from flawless and the source of my biggest insecurities!

One of the drawbacks of being so active is how my skin reacts to all the sweating. I feel like at any one point in time my skin is between overly dry & overly oily. I have combination skin and so my T-Zone & surrounding hair usually take the worst of it. This last month, though, I've finally given in and started using something completely new & different. It is called Mother Dirt, the products I’ve tried so far and have been religiously using are their AO+ Mist, Mother Dirt Cleanser, and Mother Dirt Shampoo to help improve hydration, oil production, as well as body odor.

These products have made me rethink clean since-one of the things that sets Mother Dirt apart from the competition is that their AO+ Mist contains live bacteria. Mother Dirt believes that sterility is not natural, unlike bacteria, which is a natural part of the human ecosystem, and can also benefit our skin!

Lately though, I've really felt a difference in the texture of my skin {It feels softer than ever}, and I know it’s because of Mother Dirt. So, I wanted to let you in on my little beauty secret, just in case you too are struggling with you skin and are looking for a little confidence booster:). Good news is, right now you can snag any one of these Mother Dirt products using coupon code {CBCHRISTIAN25} for 25% off your order!

This here, is the real thing! Which Mother Dirt product are you in need of?